Check out the contenders for family-friendly fun

Ah ... the days of autumn have arrived with slate-gray skies, crisp apples, scarecrows twisting in the wind and glass pumpkins sprouting from a pumpkin patch.

Glass?

Yes, glass.

This fall, the Glass Pumpkin Patch at the Morton Arboretum in Lisle joins a number of traditional suburban festivities.

Here are four ideas to get your fall family fun rolling.

An apple a day ...

There is no better place to enjoy apple treats than the annual Long Grove Apple Festival, insists John Maguire, community development director for Long Grove.

“It just feels better to eat an apple at the festival,” Maguire said.

The 19th Annual Long Grove Apple Festival runs Friday, Sept. 30, through Sunday, Oct. 2, and features a wide variety of apple fare. Get your taste buds ready for everything from apple doughnuts and apple pies to apple popcorn and apple martinis.

Or a simple apple may suffice.

“There will be plain old apples by the crate,” Maguire said.

While guests gnaw on taffy apples or sip apple lattes, they can listen to live musical entertainment. Youngsters can take part in face painting, or go for a spin on some kiddie rides.

“Fall is a prime time here in Long Grove. And this festival is a tradition — it's a real slice of Americana,” Maguire said.

10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday, Sept. 30, through Sunday, Oct. 2, at Old McHenry and Robert Parker Coffin roads, in downtown Long Grove. Admission is free; donations are welcome. Visit longgroveonline.com.

Scaring up some fun

It began as a small celebration with just a handful of scarecrows in the mid-1980s, but the St. Charles Scarecrow Fest, now in its 26th year, has grown into a celebration with hundreds of scarecrows, a carnival, live music and visitors from across the Midwest making a beeline for St. Charles each autumn.

The scarecrows, created by local residents and businesses, are divided into six categories, and festival guests can vote on their favorites. Contest winners receive prizes.

“It's always a nice surprise to see the scarecrow creations that the contestants come up with. Their ideas just get bigger and better every year,” said Jenny O'Brien, marketing manager and Scarecrow Fest liaison for the greater St. Charles Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Scarecrow designs range from the traditional (think of Dorothy's straw-stuffed pal from “The Wizard of Oz”) to animated characters, scarecrow celebrities, scenes from Bible stories and more. Previous fests have boasted such scarecrow stars as Shrek, Elvis Presley and a singing Bigfoot.

“You see visitors walking through the scarecrow contest display, and you see lots of smiles, lots of picture taking — people posing with the scarecrows,” O'Brien said. “The scarecrows are really the heart and soul of the festival.”

Other fest highlights include live entertainment on two stages, an arts and crafts show, a carnival, a petting zoo and a canine corner (with “Doggie Olympics”) for four-legged friends. New this year is the Great Taste of St. Charles, with fare from local restaurants.

Runs 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Oct. 7-8; and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 9, in St. Charles' Lincoln Park (at Fourth and Main streets) and at various sites in the downtown St. Charles area. General admission is free. Some activities require fees. Visit scarecrowfest.com for a full festival schedule and a list of locations.

Take your pick

The 2,500 pumpkins in the Glass Pumpkin Patch at the Morton Arboretum will still be quite fresh at Thanksgiving in the year 2025 — but don't try to make pies out of them.

The colorful pumpkins sitting on the arboretum's west lawn from Wednesday through Sunday, Oct. 12-16, are made of glass, and have been handblown into unique shapes and styles by an artist from the Chicago Hot Glass studio.

This pumpkin patch will look like none that has ever “grown” at the arboretum before, said lead glassblowing artist Shannon Jane Morgan.

“The arboretum will be in full color, coupled with the colors of the pumpkins,” Morgan said. “I can't imagine a more beautiful setting.”

Morgan and other artists from the glass studio have been creating the pumpkins — in vivid hues of deep blue, lime green and sunset red — for months.

The smallest pumpkins are just 2 inches by 1 inch, Morgan said.

Guests can watch as artists demonstrate their glassblowing techniques right out in the pumpkin patch. And visitors can purchase one to take home.

“The sea of glistening pumpkins will really be something for people to behold,” said Jacque Fucilla, the arboretum store manager, who has helped organize the event.

The Glass Pumpkin Patch runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday to Sunday, Oct. 12-16, at the Morton Arboretum, at I-88 and Route 53, in Lisle. Glassblowing demonstrations run on the hour from 1 to 4 p.m. Wednesday to Friday, Oct. 12-14. Purchase pumpkins from 1 to 5 p.m. Friday, Oct. 14, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 15-16. Admission is free with paid general admission to the arboretum. The pumpkin patch is part of the Morton Arboretum's annual “AutumnFest,” running through the end of October. Visit mortonarb.org for a full daily schedule.

Richardson Adventure Farm

If you are on a quest for a blue pumpkin this autumn, Richardson Adventure Farm in Spring Grove is the place to go. The farm's patch offers blue, white, yellow and golden pumpkins for the picking.

“We also have pumpkins with ‘warts' all over them and ‘Cinderella pumpkins' that are fat, just like Cinderella's pumpkin carriage,” said George Richardson, co-owner of the Richardson Adventure Farm.

For those who like to navigate their way around, the Richardson's 28½-acre corn maze — touted as “the world's largest” — is a living puzzle, with four separate mazes for wandering.

This year's maze theme is Salute to Our Military, and the image of a helmet-clad soldier and the word “Freedom” have been etched into the cornfield. Climb the farm's 50-foot tower to get a better view.

New to the farm this year are giant jumping pillows — similar to an enormous bounce house. Visitors can also take wagon rides, feed the farm's goats, watch pig races and toast marshmallows at the campfire area.

“The farm has changed a lot over the years, but it has always had a bent toward entertaining people — which is fun for us,” Richardson said. “Our biggest payback is when we see folks having fun.”

Richardson Adventure Farm, at 9407 Richardson Road in Spring Grove, is open through Monday, Oct. 31. General hours are noon to 10 p.m. Sunday; 3 to 10 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday; 3 to 11 p.m. Friday; 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday. The farm is closed Mondays and Tuesdays, except on Monday, Oct. 10 (for Columbus Day), from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Some activities may not run on certain days; check website for details. General admission is $12.95 for ages 13 and older; $9.95 for ages 4 to 12; kids ages 3 and under are free. Members of the military (with an ID) are half price. (815) 675-9729 or richardsonadventurefarm.com.